


Starshine

by Hannah_Girl



Series: Heaven and Hell bingo 2020 [2]
Category: Supernatural
Genre: Angel molting, Angels, F/M, SPN Heaven and Hell Bingo, molting, pet bird
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-05-19
Updated: 2020-05-19
Packaged: 2021-03-02 23:53:53
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 684
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24275401
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Hannah_Girl/pseuds/Hannah_Girl
Summary: Hannah and her pet bird are molting. Castiel takes care of them.
Relationships: Castiel/Hannah (Supernatural)
Series: Heaven and Hell bingo 2020 [2]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1716739
Kudos: 5





	Starshine

**Author's Note:**

> For the heaven and hell bingo. Square filled: molting.

Hannah winced as she leaned in to open the cage. Her beautiful yellow parrot had been a gift from Castiel, but today, something seemed wrong. Starshine was usually a lively large bird whose beautiful songs always comforted Hannah. She had beautiful bright yellow feathers with a touch of scarlet red on her face. Hannah thought she looked like the radiance of the stars and the energy of angelic grace.

But today, Starshine didn’t seem very radiant. She sat huddled at the bottom of her cage, a pile of yellow feathers littering the cage floor. She looked lethargic and her usual lively attitude seemed to be replaced by agitation. She’d even tried to bite Hannah when Hannah had reached for her. She seemed afraid and vulnerable.

“What is it, Hannah?” Castiel came over to peer at the cage as well, then glanced at his partner with concern. 

“Something is wrong with Starshine today,” Hannah said with a frown. It was true that she hadn’t lived on Earth for very long, so she still struggled to understand all the various creatures that lived here, especially humans. But birds were something she’d fallen in love with from the day she had arrived. Bird, butterflies, and grass. 

Castiel turned his attention to the bird. As he did that, Hannah winced as the growing pain in her back seemed to radiate through her own wings, the itchy burning sensation was getting harder to ignore.

Starshine squawked softly, expressing her discomfort as Castiel opened the cage for her. Instead of eagerly coming to the open door as she normally did, Sunshine shrank back to the very back of her cage, trying to get away from Castiel’s incoming finger. She lashed out at him frantically with her beak.

“I think she’s molting,” Castiel surmised as he withdrew his finger and stood up straight, turning to Hannah. “It’s a natural process, her body must shed old wings to make room for new ones.”

Hannah nodded, relieved that there was nothing wrong with her precious bird. She turned to Castiel, rubbing her back, her own wings slowly becoming visible.

“How can we help her?” Hannah wondered, wanting to make Starshine more comfortable through this obviously stressful process. She moved to sit down on the couch in their little apartment, the support of the cushioned back frame gave her aching wings some relief.

Castiel paused, regarding her for a moment, then reached over and ran a hand through Hannah’s wing, cautiously. The sensation, normally pleasurable and soothing, caused shooting pain in her back. She winced in surprise at the pain.

As Castiel withdrew his hand, a number of creamy white, yellow gold-tipped feathers dropped to the floor in front of the couch.

“I’m sorry,” Castiel offered as he knelt down to peer up at her, gazing into his eyes with some knowing concern. “Hannah, I think you are molting as well.”

“I didn’t think that happened to angels,” Hannah said with a wince as she put her hands in Castiel’s hands lovingly.

“Usually it doesn’t,” Castiel replied. “But when you’ve been on earth for a long time, the environment has an effect.”

Castiel stood up and gathered Hannah into his arms and arranged her onto the couch, then draped a blanket over her. “I’ll take care of you both,” he assured her. “Sunshine just needs some rest and some time to herself.”

Hannah watched as Castiel draped the bird’s cage cloth partially over the cage, shrouding part of it from view so that Sunshine could have some privacy. 

For the next few months, Castiel saw to Hannah’s comfort. He stayed close, bringing her things, letting her rest, seeing to her every need. The process was painful, but Castiel was always there to hold her. And he took care of Sunshine like she was their child. He checked on her often, feeding her and keeping her warm and safe.

When the molting process was nearly over and Castiel began to molt as well, Hannah was quick to return the care he had given her. Holding him through his pain, and keeping him warm and safe.


End file.
